PEN America Warns of “Unintended Consequences” for Campus Free Speech— Including in Classroom Discussions— in Response to Gov. Hochul’s Letter to Public Colleges on Genocide
“This political directive to discipline people for broad and vaguely defined categories of speech will put pressure on university leaders to censor or punish faculty and students, and may… More
Data from Two School Years of Book Banning Show Spread of Copycat Bans and a “Scarlet Letter” Effect for Authors
“Book banners have effectively marked a group of authors with a ‘scarlet letter,” which has intensified the pace and scope of book banning in schools,” said Kasey Meehan, Freedom… More
PEN America: Florida Education Commissioner “Undermines Academic Freedom” With Ideologically-Motivated Ban of Sociology from General Education Curricula
“This is an alarming statement by Manny Díaz, and one that substantially undermines academic freedom and university governance in the state. While governing boards are free to modify general… More
PEN America: With Resignation of Liz Magill at UPenn, Higher Ed Should Recommit Both to Rejecting Bigotry While Insuring Free Speech Can Thrive
"We have long stressed the importance of the university using its institutional voice to denounce denigration and dehumanization and stand in solidarity with those targeted by hatred. Doing so… More
PEN America Condemns Russian Government for Putting Journalist Masha Gessen on Most Wanted List
PEN America's statement said: “To target Gessen simply for referencing these acts is yet another escalation of the Russian government's effort to suppress free speech and control the narrative… More
PEN America Speaks: How We Defended and Celebrated Free Expression The Week of December 4
PEN America works tirelessly to defend free expression, support persecuted writers, and promote literary culture. Here are some of the latest ways PEN America is speaking out. More
In Amicus Brief, PEN America Argues Laws Restricting Content Moderation Online Are Unconstitutional
In the brief filed Thursday, PEN America, joined by Library Futures, argues that the Texas and Florida laws seek to impose orthodoxy on public discourse much in the same… More
PEN America: Calls for Genocide Have No Place in Reasoned Campus DIscourse
“Calls for genocide have no place in reasoned discourse. But, abhorrent as such a hypothetical may be, the First Amendment’s protections for speech extend even to deeply hateful speech,… More
PEN America: Former Trump Administration Official’s Threats Against Media are “Anathema”
"By informing the public on matters of local and national concern, journalists provide an essential check on government power. PEN America was not afraid to sue the president in… More
PEN America: “Gravely Alarmed” by Destruction and Damage to Hundreds of Culture and Educational Sites in Gaza
“Schools, libraries, mosques, churches, and cultural centers are not just buildings; they are sanctuaries of knowledge, bastions of cultural identity, and beacons of intellectual and artistic freedom. Libraries in… More